Self powering devices in dispensers are not commonly known. Often, solar cells, batteries, and/or AC power is employed as a means for powering various components within a dispenser. In more basic dispensers, hand pumps are actuated by a plunger being depressed. Indeed, all of these dispensers provide a source of mechanical motion whereby an actuator moves to allow for product to be dispensed.
Often, the dispenser includes an electronic switch in association with the actuator in order to count the number of dispenses. The switch may also trigger an indication that the dispenser is in operation. The switch associated with an actuator will either complete or break an electronic circuit upon activation in order to count or generate an indication.
One such switch known to work in association with an actuator for a dispenser is a mechanical switch that increments a counter. While these switches are operative, they are somewhat impractical due to their size, which limits the positioning required such that the user can read and reset the counter.
Prior art dispensers do not generate power from the mechanical movement necessary for dispensing of product. While prior art dispensers utilize a wide range of devices to enable signals and counters, these devices do not harness the mechanical motion of the actuator to generate power for other components.
It is also known that dispensers generate power through the use of solar cells and, while solar cells are widely employed in the art, solar cells require light to generate power and, when insufficient light is available, the supported systems are subject to failure. It would be beneficial to provide an alternative to the current power methods employed in the art of dispensing and utilize the motion of the dispensing activity itself to generate power that could be supplied to other mechanisms of the dispenser.
There is a need in the art for a dispenser that does not require a power source or mechanical switch to increment a counter and to record the data to a memory source that can be read at a later time through use of an outside mateable connection device.